In The Shadows of Failure
by Classical E. Centric
Summary: AU: Bruce Wayne, billionaire business owner/playboy/philanthropist, has always felt like a failure to his father ever since he died. He may have figured out how to fix one of his failures, thanks to five important people. [Pre-slash].
1. Three Times A Failure

**Author's Notes:** **Hello, everyone! This is my first foray into the Batman V.S. Superman/Justice League fan-fiction fandom. This drabble is to be the beginnings of a longer story; for now, I just wanted to see what everyone thought of it before I continued on.**

 **This will be an AU slash fic [Batman/Superman, Bruce/Clark]. (If you don't like this type of fiction, please turn away now).**

 **Please be respectful of my choices.**

 **Let me know what you think of this small piece.**

 **Happy reading!  
\- C.E.C.**

* * *

Tall in stature, stoic in nature, talented & cunning in the boardroom, and deeply devoted to the ones that he loved, Bruce Wayne had grown up to be the man his father Thomas had always wanted him to be.

But, somehow, Bruce didn't feel much the same; he felt as if he had failed his father… in more ways than one…

He first failed him by not being able to save him or his mother after they both were shot right in front of him. But, alas, he was just a child, and what could a child of his age do in that situation? In his case, it was nothing, leaving him to feel much the same.

He secondly failed him, when he left town unexpectedly after graduating college, allowing his father's company to fall into the hands of some very deceitful, power-hungry fiends, who almost put the city of Gotham into chaos and corporate ruin.

Thankfully, for Bruce's sake, there were still some members of the board not corrupted by greed and evil. They had made sure to return Wayne Enterprises & Logistics back to their former glory with Bruce at the helm.

Upon his return, Bruce himself made sure to 'restructure' the board, ousting those who couldn't keep their promises to his father. This circumstance still didn't change the feelings of disappointment in his mind, sadness in his heart, and despair in his soul.

The third (and current time) that he failed his father was in the 'home department'.

'Home department', as in his love life and home life away from his business world and his popularity of sorts…

To say that he had anyone special in his life was an understatement.

He only had Alfred, and even his noble, respected & patient butler/father-figure knew that his young (now older) master needed companionship. Bruce wasn't unlovable or unloved by any means; he had great friends at JLA and surprisingly enough at Wayne Enterprises & Logistics.

But, it just wasn't enough for him; he wanted – no, he needed – more.

And the 'more' he needed, was something deep down he knew that his father would be finally proud of him for: a son.

Someone to pass the Wayne name and legacy on to…

Someone to love and respect him…

Someone to prove that he wasn't a failure after all…

 _((The end... or is it?))_


	2. Night Wing

**Author's Notes:** **Hi, friends!**

 **So, I decided to continue this fic by bringing in each of Batman/Bruce Wayne's sons into the storyline.**

 **Each boy will be introduced in their own chapter.**

 **I have created AU versions of their backstories, so please don't be angry if its not exactly how their stories are in RL.**

 **Happy reading!**

 **\- C.E.C.**

* * *

 ** _Chapter Two: Night Wing._**

Sitting in his office one afternoon, Bruce contemplated all of his options.

He could find a woman, get her pregnant, and have the child he'd always wanted.

He could also adopt a child from an orphanage; there were many who needed a warm home and loving environment to belong to.

He made sure to get all of the applicable phone number and addresses for adoption agencies, just as his secretary, Livia Coleman, walked into the room. She said nothing, before putting afternoon messages, mail and files on his desk before heading out to her own.

He missed his former secretary, Winifred Lloyd, with a passion. She always said a cheery "Good morning, Mr. Wayne", when she came into his office, and she always had a fun anecdote for him to use in one of his speeches to the board. She also kept him in check when it came to meetings, dinner dates, et cetera.

Winifred, or 'Winnie', as he (and only he) called her, was a calming, pleasant soul in his otherwise chaotic world. Her father was a world-champion gymnast and her mother a prima ballerina; both passing down their talents down to her and her sister, Mary-Elizabeth. While she chose to work at Wayne Enterprises & Logistics after graduating college with a degree in business & clerical studies, her sister Mary discovered her love for the circus after meeting a circus acrobat on a blind date.

Winnie also found love with Elliott Sexton, the son of a member on Thomas Wayne's board of directors; he was in medical school, studying to be a cardiologist. They lived in a quiet, little apartment, never marrying one another nor having any children; it was what they both wanted. But, that didn't stop their happiness together; Mary's son visited as often as he could, as well as Elliott's brothers' children. When he was diagnosed with terminal cancer and passed away soon after, Winnie was devastated. She didn't want to live without Elliott, but she knew she had to; he would have wanted her to be safe and to live a long & happy life.

Years passed, and tragedy struck Winnie's life again. Her sister Mary and her husband John were shot & killed after a performance, leaving their young son an orphan. Winnie just couldn't let that happen to her only nephew, so she made the decision and took the young boy into her quiet, little world.

Richard, or 'Dick', as everyone called him, was a very bright child and very responsible for himself. There were times that Winnie didn't even have to tell Dick to go bed, come to dinner, take a bath, et cetera; he just did them himself, not wanting to bother his aunt or cause anymore drama. He was a well-liked student at his private school, which Winnie insisted that he go to (instead of being home-schooled). He excelled in physics, mathematics and biology, as well as phys. Ed. (where he was talented at gymnastics, cross-country, track and soccer). He also enjoyed going to Wayne Enterprises & Logistics to see his aunt, where he also got to meet & see Bruce. The young CEO took pleasure in Dick's visits, getting to know the boy, along with his likes & dislikes, his quirks and his talents. He discussed statistics and economics with Dick, as well as the current state of the Gotham Guardians, Blades and Wildcats sports teams.

As time moved on, Dick was moving quickly into his seventh grade year at Brentwood Academy and Winifred started to slow down and get winded, while doing to most mundane things. Bruce was the first to notice that she was having breathing issues and immediately had her sent to the hospital to be checked out. The doctors there recognized her symptoms and through testing and multiple scans, they diagnosed that she had cancer. Knowing this, she just couldn't let herself die; she had Dick & his future to think about it. She knew instantly that she would fight tooth-and-nail to stay alive for her nephew, but her fight gave out fifteen months later.

That left Dick yet again without a family, making him feel orphaned once more. Bruce recognized the pain that the young boy was feeling and he couldn't let that happen; he too was an orphan, raised to become more by his loving butler/father-figure/teacher, Alfred Pennyworth. Winnie had thankfully thought about this scenario and made it a point in her will that Bruce was to become Dick's legal guardian upon her death, making him his ward.

"So, what does that mean?" Dick questioned softly. "I'm your ward? I don't understand…"

"It means that you belong to me now…" Bruce responded back. "You will come to live with me. I'll take care of you, protect you, feed you, and among other things, love you…"

"So, I'd be your son…?"

"In a way, yes… in a way, no… I'm just your legal guardian…"

"What's the difference between that and being my dad? The love is still the same, isn't it?"

Bruce couldn't answer that question; he was just too proud of Dick at that moment. The young boy didn't care whether he was technically his father or not; he just wanted to be a part of a family and be loved. The older man put his arms around the boy and embraced him close.

This was something both of them wanted and so desperately needed…

 **TBC?**

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 _A/N: So, what do we think so far? Let me know..._


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